


Mismatched

by BeesFrightenMes



Category: Darkest Powers - Kelley Armstrong
Genre: ??? - Freeform, Angst, Awkwardness, Comedy, F/M, Gen, How Do I Tag, I Don't Even Know, Spooky Mansions, i think, original storyline
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-03
Updated: 2018-06-03
Packaged: 2019-05-17 12:40:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14832443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeesFrightenMes/pseuds/BeesFrightenMes
Summary: Supernatural and Co. is on a mission, one that could change things for other supernaturals everywhere. But what happens when the son of their fearless leader and a tag-along from the West Coast fall for each other?(Title and summary changed bc they made me cringe. Hopefully these are more palatable)





	1. Getting Settled

The house I had found in the middle of rural New York was breathtaking; it was a splendid stone mansion in the old style, covered in moss and secluded by a few miles of trees in every direction. Surrounded by weathered wooden fencing, it was a pastoral picture in the countryside.

I could tell that Mr. Bae and Dr. Fellows were both blown out of the water by my discovery-- and a little suspicious, of course. After all, how was it possible for someone to locate a place they had never seen before? Was it a trap? Did I lead them to a secret Edison Group hideout where they’d never be found again?

No, I didn’t send them to their doom. At least, not intentionally. Perhaps some of the spiders and wild animals around this house may scare them half to death, but there were no people here, I made sure of that. How?

I’m a Mind-Walker. The name is, admittedly, pretty damn cool-sounding, but it’s hard to explain. If Chloe tells people she’s a necromancer, or Derek decides to reveal that he’s a werewolf, everyone will know what those mean. Even Simon’s status as sorcerer or Tori’s title of witch are easier to understand. But when the word Mind-Walker pops out of my mouth, even I’m a little confused as to what it means.

The textbook definition of a Mind-Walker is as follows: Mind-Walkers are ‘gifted’ people whose minds have the power to perform various mental feats, such as travelling over great distances. Plain and simple, Mind-Walkers make magic things happen with their brains. Seems like an awesome ability, right? ….Maybe not all the time.

Anyways, I found this house by mind-walking, which is the primary ability Mind-Walkers are named for. We have this strange power to see miles ahead in our minds, running over landscapes and sceneries before ever stepping foot on them physically. This way, we can scope out future destinations, or search for something without even leaving our seats. It can be tiring, but it can also be a great help. _I mean, it helped me find this house._

“This house looks like it belongs in a movie,” Chloe commented, eyeing the part of the mansion that we could see illuminated by the headlights as we drove up the long dirt drive.

“A horror movie, probably.” Tori crossed her arms. “You sure this place is kosher, Daph?”

I nodded. “I walked through it after I found it, and the only thing you’ll find in there is dust, lint, and cobwebs. You scared of spiders?”

Tori stuck out her tongue in an expression of disgust. “I vote Derek as king spider killer.”

“I’m not running into your room at any time of day just because you _think_ you see a spider.”

“You’d come running for me?” Her voice took on a tone of mocking. “What a hero.”

Derek snorted, and he continued to look out the window in silence. It was a far cry from him snapping at her, something he definitely would’ve done before. I was kind of impressed.

Simon was uncommonly quiet, his sketchbook lying open in his lap. It was flipped to a blank spread, his pencil lying in the center, still as perfectly sharp as it was three hours ago. I didn’t know what was causing his artist’s block, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to ask. After all, he’d just gotten his dad back a week ago, and Chloe was more or less 100% enamored with Derek, and he with her. The two lovebirds were actually sort of holding hands right now, except it couldn’t really be called much more than an intertwining of seeking pinkies. Dr. Fellows would look over every once in awhile to make sure there was no inappropriate contact going on.

I shook my head at the thought. From what Chloe had said in passing, it seemed like the good doctor was trying to make up for not protecting her niece earlier, and it was coming off as too little too late.

_No doubt,_ I thought. _She’s trying to act like Chloe’s mom, and she’s not. When Chloe was being drugged half to hell at Lyle House, her aunt didn’t do shit, but now when she wants to hang out with a cool boy who likes her for her, she gets all up in arms?_

There was a dull pain growing in the back of my skull, probably from the excessive use of my abilities, dehydration, and the fact that I hadn’t had a meal that hadn’t come out of a fast food container in days. God, I would’ve killed for a freaking salad. The bagged kind from the grocery store, with two types of lettuce, crunchy carrot strips, and red cabbage, with some Southwest Chipotle dressing on it. My mouth watered at the thought, and the ache pulsed stronger.

Simon’s dark eyes met mine, and I looked away. My head hurt like hell, and having him staring at me wasn’t going to help.

“All right everybody,” Mr. Bae announced, right on time. “We’re here. Grab your stuff, we’ll set up inside.”

“Aye aye,” I replied quietly, grabbing my backpack. It was time to check out the mansion.

* * *

Turns out that I hooked us a gem. Not only was it situated in the perfect area for an extended stay, the mansion was huge, with six bedrooms-- enough for the adults to get their own, each boy to claim one for themselves, and the girls to split the other two between them.

“I’ll take the last one on the right,” I offered, raising my hand.

“Daphne,” Chloe looked at me in shock. “You can’t do that, you found this whole place for us!”

“Yeah,” Tori chimed in. “Altogether, that room is like, the size of a generous closet. I don’t even know how they managed to fit a bed in there.”

I shrugged. “I dunno, I like it. It’s cozy. And this way, you guys don’t get lonely without a roommate.”

Simon shot a glance at me. “I could switch with you, if you like.” His room was right across the way from mine, which was partly why I wanted it.

“Yeah,” the dark-haired girl agreed. “Make Simon live in the closet.”

I shook my head. “That’s not fair. I’ll take that closet and be happy with it too. It has plenty of space for me and my things.” I grinned. “Now none of you can complain about your own rooms!”

“Ah, you had an ulterior motive!” Mr. Bae smiled back. “Well, as long as everyone is pleased with their rooms, we can start making a game plan for our stay here once we’ve all had a good night’s sleep.”

We agreed, and pretty much everyone retreated to their rooms to sleep. Well, everyone except for me and Simon, a thought that made my pulse flutter unevenly in my neck.

“You sure you’re ok with that room?” He asked me the question again, dark brown eyes filled with concern.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me.” I smiled at him, even though the headache that had been growing in the back of my head had bloomed into a full-scale migraine that made me want to cry. I had some water and painkillers in my backpack, but I was scared to take them in front of everyone. Something about the way they looked at me…. I didn’t like the pity that blurred their vision. If anything, I much preferred gratitude or pride, happiness with my deeds. Not guilt for the fact that I had hurt myself for them, for all of us. “You should get some sleep, Simon.” I turned towards my room, ready for an escape.

“Daphne.” Simon reached out and grabbed my wrist gently, making me face him. His deep eyes held the same concern from earlier, mixed with some similar emotion that I couldn’t place; It made me uncomfortable. “You’re hurt.”

“I’ll be ok.” The pulsing feeling continued, making my eyes water. “I just need some rest and a couple pills and I’ll be raring to go tomorrow.”

“Are you sure? I could get my dad or Dr. Fellows if you--”

“Please, Simon.” I looked into his eyes, and he let go wordlessly, letting me turn and escape into my room. I swallowed down pills with a few gulps of water, groaning in pain as I collapsed on the bed.

I could already tell that this was going to be a long stay.


	2. Lewis and Clark, more like... Daphne in the Dark?

Morning came, sunlight filtering through the window in a steady, even stream. My eyes opened blearily, the headache from yesterday fading to nothing.

I glanced at the clock over the dresser. 7:00 am. I had managed to-- whoop de doo-- get a whopping five and a half hours of sleep. I rolled over and groaned, trying to return to unconsciousness. I tried everything. Buried myself in the covers. Tucked my cold feet into a fold of warm blanket. Nothing worked. My body was ready to be awake.

My bare feet hit the floor, and my first thought was: _do they have a shower around here? I’m probably stanking up the place right now._ I shook myself and began to head to the lower level, careful not to step too loudly down the hall and stairwell.

I wasn’t the first one up and at ‘em. Mr. Bae was leaning on a countertop, sipping absently at a cup of coffee before his eyes met mine.

“Daphne,” he said, sounding surprised. “Awake already?”

I raised a brow, my lip quirking up. “Could ask you the same question, Mr. B.”

He chuckled. “I guess you could.” His face resumed a neutral expression. “I was just thinking about what our plans are from here on out.”

I nodded. “St. Cloud isn’t going to be too happy about our timely dissembling of the Edison Group’s headquarters.”

Mr. Bae agreed. “We can’t let the Cabal get wind of where we are-- they’re set on punishing us for what we’ve done, which means--”

“Torture,” I finished. “Or death. Maybe both.”

He nodded.

“I could do some mind-walking later, check out the surrounding area. So far, this area is pretty secluded. Our only neighbors are the wildlife and this awesome-looking waterfall.”

The man’s eyes narrowed for a moment, almost as if he was scrutinizing me instead of considering my offer.

I waited for his response dutifully. _If I could be of some use…_

“You’ve been a big help already. I don’t want to tire you out. Derek and Simon can go out and physically walk the perimeter.”

A sigh left my mouth unconsciously. Shot down.

Mr. Bae smiled. “Don’t worry, there’ll be a lot of other things for you to do, soon enough.”

* * *

So, we decided to discuss the plan over breakfast. It was like a mismatched family gathering, with Mr. Bae at the head of the table, dark-haired Derek on his right side and sunny Simon on his left. Tori, _also_ his child, sat next to Simon. Chloe, the tiny yet loveable necromancer, was on Derek’s other side, her worried aunt Dr. Fellows chattering in her ear. I sat next to Tori. The other end of the table was empty.

I was tempted to laugh at the incongruity of it, but I thought it might be misplaced, especially since Mr. B had just opened his mouth to speak.

“We’ve decided to stay here for a little while,” he stated, expression serious. “Maybe even make it a base of operations. Our goal is to find and help the people the Edison Group has meddled with, perhaps even destroy the Group in the future. Rae and her mother should be our first focuses.” Chloe was nodding, her bright blue eyes fixed on Mr. Bae’s face. “We also need to avoid St. Cloud at all cost, as they see us as an obstacle and will have no problem attempting to eliminate us.”

Everyone at the table nodded their agreement, except for Tori, who we all should’ve expected to start asking the hard questions. “And what about us? Are we just going to live on the run forever?”

Mr. Bae looked thoughtful, before replying. “We’re not requiring you to join us. If you want to return to your... father, then it’s your choice.”

Tori recoiled at the mention of her ‘dad’. He’d betrayed her once-- who’s to say he wouldn’t do it again? Also, she didn’t know it, but Mr. Bae was her real dad, the biological one who accounted for about half of her crazy powers. “...I think I’ll stay.”

Mr. B nodded. “We’d be glad to have you here, Tori. Anyways, this isn’t going to be easy. We’ll have to do some training, gather supplies, and try to reach out to people. It could be dangerous, and I want to make sure we’re all prepared for this.”

His sons were obviously in it, and Tori seemed to want to stay with us too. If Derek was going, Chloe was going, which meant Dr. Fellows would be trailing behind her the whole way. As for me… well, the closest relatives I had were in California, and this was the best way I could use my powers to help people.

Selfishly, I also wanted to learn more about being a Mind-Walker for my own purposes. What other powers did I have that I didn’t know about yet? What kind of adventures would I get up to with Supernaturals and Co.? I figured I might as well stick around-- these people trusted me and I trusted them, and I wasn’t about to give this up.

“Full speed ahead, Captain,” I said, saluting. “I’m ready for this undertaking.”

“Good to know Daphne.” Mr. B turned to his sons. “Time to walk the perimeter.”

* * *

While Simon and Derek were scouting the surrounding woodland, Mr. Bae drove Dr. Fellows, Chloe, and Tori to get some supply shopping done in the nearest town. Both groups had asked if I wanted to join them, and I had politely declined under the claim of ‘getting some rest.’

That was just a cover for a much more embarrassing plan: I wanted to explore this mansion. The first floor was composed of a foyer, living room, parlor, dining room, kitchen, sunroom, and a library. The second floor had all six bedrooms, a study, and a locked door that I had tried to mind-walk through the night before but could not.

I was stupidly excited to have the whole house to myself. I mean, a freaking mansion in the middle of nowhere, covered in moss and holding infinite unknown mysteries, just waiting to be discovered by an errant Mind-Walker? And Tori accused _Chloe_ of being a romantic, under the singular charge of loving film. _If they could see me now..._

My starting point was the foyer. A rug by the front door said, ‘Welcome, Welcome’ in large letters. The foyer had a carved wood coat rack and shoe rack in it, with a couple pairs of unfamiliar footwear on the shelves. Two pairs of loafers, oxfords, flats… People had lived here once. How long ago? I picked up the pair of oxfords and ran my fingers down the leather, coming away with a thick layer of dust on my finger. I sneezed.

Putting the shoe back, I wiped the offending finger on my leggings, leaving a gray streak.

“Blech,” I muttered, moving on.

The living room had two beige couches and a large TV in it, the coffee table covered with some old magazines. Some of the titles included _Good Housekeeping_ , _Woman’s Day_ , and _Real Simple_. I flipped through a couple pages of them, then put them back. _Riveting stuff_.

The parlor was spotless, with a purple couch and matching lounge chair. The wallpaper was dark brown with little lilac flower designs. A few paintings hung on the walls. Did the people who lived here receive lots of guests in the middle of nowhere? They certainly were _prepared to_ , even if none ever came.

Perhaps the only remarkable fact about the dining room or kitchen was that they were huge. This house wasn’t made for a small family of four. I ran my hand over the back of one of the chairs. It was smooth, solid craftsmanship. I traced my fingers through the intricate curlicues, wondering who had once purchased them.

The sunroom was cute, bright light streaming in and illuminating it with a soft glow. _A good place to read books_ , I decided, passing through the adjacent door to the library.

For a home library, it was excellent. Eight floor to ceiling bookshelves, packed with tomes, rose up around me. I stepped to the nearest one, reading the spine of a dark blue book.

“ _Immunology and the Body’s Response to Invasion_ ,” I murmured wistfully to myself. Throughout high school, I had dreams of being a doctor, of one day opening my own practice. Now I’m 16, I haven’t been to school in months, and I’m on the run from supernatural killers of all types (but mostly sorcerers… thanks a lot, St. Cloud).

The whole shelf was full of medical reference books, except for one small anomaly. Shoved in at the end, practically only a pamphlet, was a copy of “Tell-Tale Heart,” by Edgar Allan Poe.

“What are you doing here….?” I breathed, pulling it out. While I loved science, I was practically an English prodigy… or at least, most people thought I had some skill in it. But it didn’t take a language whiz to know that this short story was very out of place.

“Whoa!” I opened the tiny pamphlet, and a tiny silver key came tumbling out. I stooped down to pick it up and turned it over in my fingers. It was the length of my pinky, with a line of roses engraved on it. “I guess I’ll just have to hold on to you.”

It was hard to drag myself from the library, but I knew there was more of this house to explore. Making a mental promise to return to the columns of books, I marched onwards.

The bathrooms were all filled with fantastic scents and shampoos, luxury soaps and all sorts of personal care items that seemed to be very gently used, or not even opened yet. I marveled at the claw-foot tub in one of them, and startled myself with my reflection in the floor length mirrors that were tucked away ever so neatly in the bathroom closets. I was pleased to have located a shower, but even further confused by how… lived-in it seemed. Were the people on vacation? Why were all these lovely things still here when the outside of the house was overgrown with plants and moss?

I trudged up the stairs, still thinking about the situation when I reached the top. My exploration, so far, had yielded more questions than answers. A bathroom full of goods that were intended for use one day. A perfect parlor, frozen in time. A mysterious key from a story that did not belong. Something didn’t make sense, and I, Daphne Bloom, was going to get to the bottom of it. _Hopefully_.

I quickly decided that I wouldn’t spend much time in rooms that weren’t my own-- it’d be a huge invasion of privacy to snoop through my companions’ items, and I wasn’t about to give them a reason to be upset with me.  
The only item of interest found from my forays into the adult’s chosen bedrooms was a handkerchief embroidered with small flowers that I didn’t recognize. “Well,” I said to myself, squinting at them. “It’s not wisteria, or a rose, or a lily, so…..” I made a note to hold onto this too.

The girls’ room was already taken over with their stuff. Tori had hung up her clothes in the closet, and Chloe’s side of the room beheld a well-loved notepad with some screenplay ideas penciled into it. Nothing in there for me.

I didn’t want to enter Derek’s room, so from the door I scanned for any interesting things, and found none. He had, thankfully, left the closet open, and from my position I couldn’t see anything of interest. I moved on to the room Simon had claimed.

There was a small trapdoor on the ceiling-- attic entrance, probably. While my urge to explore was strong, it recoiled a little bit at the sight of that door. Step one to surviving in a post-apocalyptic/horror story: never enter the attic alone. _Or never enter the attic, period_.

I busied myself searching the rest of Simon’s room, looking at everything yet stopping myself from touching any of his personal belongings. _Watch it, you. The poor boy didn’t sign up for you to gawk at him, or his personal life._

The room smelled powerfully of his deodorant, and he hadn’t made his bed after sleeping in it this morning. I exited his room without finding anything else, and without touching any of his things. I did feel a little proud of myself though, for what appeared to me as a powerful exercise of self control. _Yeah Daphne, like not being a creep and looking through his stuff is something you should pat yourself on the back for._

Lastly, it was time to enter my own room with a critical eye. My dresser, like many of the closets and wardrobes in the house, was full of clothes. From a quick examination of them, I realized that this room had once been inhabited by a similarly curvy girl. “What are the odds?” I asked myself, looking through them. Most of them were skirts, or dresses, but at least it was something. I had to admit, thinking about wearing them didn’t feel the greatest from a moral standpoint, but at some time I was bound to get tired of switching between the same two or three dirty outfits.

As I was about to leave, I noticed that the solid color brown wallpaper was beginning to peel at the edges. Taking a chance, I knelt down and pulled it up about a foot or so. The wallpaper underneath was covered in images of toy horses and cars, teddy bears and bicycles. This must have been a nursery once. Ouch. I let the brown wallpaper fall gently. Why’d they need to cover it up? Then, the answer seemed obvious to me. _Their little boy… something must've happened to him._

The only rooms left were the study and whatever secrets lay behind that locked door. I decided to explore the study first, see if I could find anything new and interesting about this pristine house in the middle of nowhere.

I entered the study hesitantly, coming face to face with a long desk, and more bookshelves. On top of the desk was a leatherbound book, a journal perhaps. I strode to it, sitting in the desk chair and opening it. There were a couple of entries from past years, mostly detailing family celebrations, issues at work, ideas for the future. At the end of each of them was a simple signature: Alec McGarland. I flipped to the latest entry, which was short, written hurriedly and messily:

_Anna and I were told to bring the family up to Canada again, this time for good. They haven’t found us yet, but I’m supposing this is to make sure they never do. Melissa doesn’t want to leave her fiance behind, but we must leave at once. Billy is starting to catch on about the Shadels._  
_It’ll break my heart to leave this house, but it’s for the best. We’re needed up north, and perhaps the things we’ve accumulated over the years may be of use to some poor traveler down the line._  
_If you’re reading this, our house is yours. We don’t need these things anymore, not where we’re going._

_-Alec McGarland_

I sat back, stunned. This entry was dated about a year ago, but the house was in such good condition… Who were the McGarlands running from? And who were the Shadels? Why did they need to leave so soon, and how was it that we, a group that was _also_ on the run, ended up here?

I resolved to tell Mr. Bae about this once he returned, because there was no way that this… that this was a coincidence. I usually wavered on the subject of fate or faith, about whether I believed in a higher power or not, but something had to have led me here, led us here.

Eventually, I returned to my senses enough to remind myself that I was still on the hunt for clues. _Get it together, Daph, you’ve found out who lived here and why they left, but there are still like a billion questions left unanswered. Hop to it!_

The desk drawers were all locked, and, upon trying to use the key I’d found on them, still refused to budge. “I guess those aren’t what you open, huh,” I addressed the key, turning it over in my hand. “Something else, then….” It hit me. _What about that locked door?_

I shot up out of the chair and ran to the door. It looked just like all the others, but it wouldn’t give up its contents nearly as easily. I remembered trying to mind-walk it last night and being shoved out, almost as if something inside didn’t want me there.

Part of me, the smart, self-preserving part, suggested that I wait for Derek and Simon to come back before I stumbled into something potentially dangerous. Because even though I had just skimmed the McGarland patriarch’s life story, he could still be hiding, I dunno, Cerberus or something behind this door. The other part of me, the part that lived for adventure, said: _fuck it, just open the door. If you’re meant to die today, you’re meant to die._ Or maybe that’s what I told myself because I desperately wanted to be brave and just _open the freaking door._

Steeling myself, I put the key in the lock and turned. The tumblers clicked and it opened. I stepped in, pushing the door open, and stopped dead. What met my eyes shocked me; I couldn’t even imagine something like this.


End file.
